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Frustration..

Hang in there man at least opportunity is around you. If I began to explain my season on a yearly basis you'd think I was a madman to still be trying to hunt. Lol
 
Sounds to me like he knows your moves . You'll need to change up some things . I know sitting in a shooting house is comfortable but do you have any trees you can get in between where you have been seeing him just as Gravey mentioned. Those elusive bucks are hard to corner and if you don't get close enough for an encounter soon that window will close .
 
Not trying to be crass, but that sounds like a good problem to have. All I've seen are dinks and does, with the exception of one nice one that I've seen twiceā€¦ once with my son in juvenile, and once a few hundred yards away during ml. In my area I rarely see decent bucks after the end of November, and I am also having a hard time finding the time to hunt, so my odds of even getting a buck this season are very low. I won't complain, but will likely shoot another doe or two from the river for some friends who want the meat and still make the most of my time in God's beautiful creation
 
If it's going to happen it's going to happen. I second guessed myself for missing opportunities my whole life. When I was in the right spot at the right time, bad decisions were made and big bucks were crippled or missed. Then I caught a once in a lifetime just under a 100 pound blue cat. At that moment my outlook changed forever. Just go as much as you can. If it's meant to be it will happen and you will be surprised at how easy things can work when it does. Be ready at all times.
 
Bgoodman30 said:
I may be the unluckiest hunter alive.. I have been deer hunting for decades but just started buck hunting about 7 years ago.. Since then I have worked my tail off improving habitat, food plots and patterning mature deer. I have killed some nice bucks but have yet to break the 4+ yo mark although I have had an encounter almost every season but no kill... Last year I lost my first buck. This season had a MZ misfire on #1. Finally found one after lockdown. Saw him yesterday morning 330 yards went back into woods. Yesterday afternoon 300+ yards coming over rise right under my stand I hunted that morning and then disappeared. Today opposite side again 325 yards had him broadside but passed due to fear over losing another deer. Gets whiffy and bounds away probably to never be seen again. I don't know how much more of this I can take..
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I feel you...I've been there. This is probably not what you want to hear right now - but, hopefully you will receive it in the spirit it is intended. I wasn't raised in a hunting family - I started on my own about 18 years old. This was in the 80's. I knew NOTHING! We didn't have youtube to watch. All we had were some national magazines that the articles didn't even apply to hunting around here. I honestly didn't even know you had to sight a gun in and hunted with one without sighting it in .. until I missed a huge buck. So embarrassing. I have made so many mistakes - and I still do. BUT, the first 15 years or so of my deer hunting was a comedy of errors. But, I finally got to the place that every missed opportunity and mess up - I'm going to analyze what I did wrong and how to fix it. Sometimes it was an equipment upgrade needed, sometimes it was practice needed, sometimes it was tweeking setups, etc. I found as I analyzed these and made adjustments, my luck changed. NOW, that being said, it's hunting....there are always going to be times we lose and times we win. No matter how experienced or how good we think we are at it. And just when we think we've seen it all, we'll see something we've never seen. Keep your head up.
 
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Bgoodman30 said:
Yeah my shooting house is in the middle and I've sat in it more than anywhere this season and never seen him in it. I decided I needed to get in there with em and I have had 3 encounters but he may have been dead in the boxā€¦. That's what so frustrating doesn't matter where sit it's always the wrong spotā€¦
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Think about this. You and your wife (or anyone) go into a big store. She goes in one direction to find whatever and you head to sporting goods.

When it's time to get back together you start looking for her. You search - ladies wear, shoes, cosmetics... etc. finally you give up and go stand at the front of the store. Before long your wife walks up. Your immediate reaction is, "Where were you you? I looked all over for you."

Her reply, "I was looking for you."

Right now you and that deer are just moving around - you looking for him and him looking for you.

You know this deer's area. Pick whatever spot seems the most advantageous to you. Enough of all the analysis. Stick with that spot where you know he will eventually show up.

Now that advice is worth exactly what you paid for it. šŸ˜„ But it's worth a try.
 
Or just quitšŸ˜‚ in all seriousness just keep going its bound to happen eventually. Im at sit 32 without seeing a legal buck of any kind, since killing a small 8 point on Columbus day
 
Bgoodman30 said:
I may be the unluckiest hunter alive.. I have been deer hunting for decades but just started buck hunting about 7 years ago.. Since then I have worked my tail off improving habitat, food plots and patterning mature deer. I have killed some nice bucks but have yet to break the 4+ yo mark although I have had an encounter almost every season but no kill... Last year I lost my first buck. This season had a MZ misfire on #1. Finally found one after lockdown. Saw him yesterday morning 330 yards went back into woods. Yesterday afternoon 300+ yards coming over rise right under my stand I hunted that morning and then disappeared. Today opposite side again 325 yards had him broadside but passed due to fear over losing another deer. Gets whiffy and bounds away probably to never be seen again. I don't know how much more of this I can take..
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My takeaway from this is that you are at least having opportunities. If it was easy, it would be boring.

That's 75% of the battle. Keep going! Grind time baby
 
Snake said:
Sounds to me like he knows your moves . You'll need to change up some things . I know sitting in a shooting house is comfortable but do you have any trees you can get in between where you have been seeing him just as Gravey mentioned. Those elusive bucks are hard to corner and if you don't get close enough for an encounter soon that window will close .
Click to expand...

Yeah that's what I been doing but he seems to come out the opposite side every time. No rhyme or reason to it. He would be dead if I sat in the shooting house. I try not to be lazy and get cozy in the box all the time but my wind was swirling a little bit according to my milk weed check... I am afraid he may have got a whiff and he bounced... Something that would not have happened in the house..
 
EastTNHunter said:
Not trying to be crass, but that sounds like a good problem to have. All I've seen are dinks and does, with the exception of one nice one that I've seen twiceā€¦ once with my son in juvenile, and once a few hundred yards away during ml. In my area I rarely see decent bucks after the end of November, and I am also having a hard time finding the time to hunt, so my odds of even getting a buck this season are very low. I won't complain, but will likely shoot another doe or two from the river for some friends who want the meat and still make the most of my time in God's beautiful creation
Click to expand...

Yes sir its been about the same for me this season a lot of long sits with nothing but dinks. Actually this is the first mature deer I have ever seen while hunting after Nov 12th.. I didn't know about this buck until a week ago. He is only hit my cameras one time since 8/4. I found a summer pic of him after looking again in Early August in a bachelor group. He is not my number one buck but he is now he's a dandy. My number one buck disappeared a month ago..
 
DMD said:
I feel you...I've been there. This is probably not what you want to hear right now - but, hopefully you will receive it in the spirit it is intended. I wasn't raised in a hunting family - I started on my own about 18 years old. This was in the 80's. I knew NOTHING! We didn't have youtube to watch. All we had were some national magazines that the articles didn't even apply to hunting around here. I honestly didn't even know you had to site a gun in and hunted with one without siting it in .. until I missed a huge buck. So embarrassing. I have made so many mistakes - and I still do. BUT, the first 15 years or so of my deer hunting was a comedy of errors. But, I finally got to the place that every missed opportunity and mess up - I'm going to analyze what I did wrong and how to fix it. Sometimes it was an equipment upgrade needed, sometimes it was practice needed, sometimes it was tweeking setups, etc. I found as I analyzed these and made adjustments, my luck changed. NOW, that being said, it's hunting....there are always going to be times we lose and times we win. No matter how experienced or how good we think we are at it. And just when we think we've seen it all, we'll see something we've never seen. Keep your head up.
Click to expand...

I am the same way. I am the only one in my family that hunts. All self taught I begged my dad to ask his friends to take me. Luckily we found some folks that did.. I bought my first farm at 25 and have others leased and do most of the improvements myself.
 
Deer Assassin said:
With the right rifle and good optics steady rest 300-325 is very doable

Use a good bullet ā€¦ accubond Barnes

Good luck
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Thank you sir. My 30-06 is zeroed at 100 with Rem Core locks and I have never shot anything at 300plus yard distance. The last thing I want to do is not recover a deer. I actually called my Marine sniper friend after and he did the math for me and said I would have about exactly a 12 " drop at that distance. I did not know that and I held it right on the shoulder when I needed to be aiming right at top of his back...
 
TNCharlie said:
Think about this. You and your wife (or anyone) go into a big store. She goes in one direction to find whatever and you head to sporting goods.

When it's time to get back together you start looking for her. You search - ladies wear, shoes, cosmetics... etc. finally you give up and go stand at the front of the store. Before long your wife walks up. Your immediate reaction is, "Where were you you? I looked all over for you."

Her reply, "I was looking for you."

Right now you and that deer are just moving around - you looking for him and him looking for you.

You know this deer's area. Pick whatever spot seems the most advantageous to you. Enough of all the analysis. Stick with that spot where you know he will eventually show up.

Now that advice is worth exactly what you paid for it. šŸ˜„ But it's worth a try.
Click to expand...

That's funny.. Your'e exactly right. I am definitely guilty of overthinking...
 

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